Zutara - Hold on to Me
by Katara94
Summary: What happens when Katara has lost all of her memories and Zuko has to take care of her?
1. Chapter 1

_Zutara – Hold On To Me_

_I do not own anything from Avatar The Last Air bender._

Chapter One:

_-Zuko-_

Three years ago, I was banished and scarred by my own father. Doomed to hunt down the Avatar in order to restore my honor. Sad thing is…I _did_ find him. I followed him and his two friends from the Southern Water Tribe all over the world for nearly half of a year. I have fought them countless times just so I could retrieve the Avatar and return home. Each time I failed. Still I continued to follow them. Now look at where it has gotten me.

Two months already since the day my Uncle Iroh and I became fugitives of the Fire Nation. Two months we have been living inside of a cave in the Earth Kingdom near a cliff looking below a large lake. We will go into town when we need to _beg_ for money just to buy supplies in order for us to survive out here. To many we are considered refugees. How about that?! Once crowned prince of the Fire Nation goes from being banished one minute and practically begging the next! _I hate this!_ Why did my father have to send Azula after us_?! What have I done to deserve this?!_

"Prince Zuko the rice is done" my Uncle called out to me which made me stop my pacing which I had been doing for over an hour since the sun had set.

I walked over to my Uncle and we ate in silence. Unfortunately it did not last very long after we had finished our meals.

Uncle called out to me again asking, "What is troubling you my nephew?"

_Might as well tell him the truth_, I argued with myself before turning to him and telling him the decision I had made throughout my pacing back and forth in front of the entrance of the cave. "I'm done hunting the Avatar. For good."

Uncle paused briefly, eyeing me like I was sick with a cold. "You're absolutely sure about this decision?"

I nodded only once. I didn't want to talk about my reasoning behind this, but knowing Uncle he was going to ask within the next ten seconds.

"Not that I'm not happy about this decision, but why the sudden change of heart? For three years now you have talked of nothing except capturing the Avatar, but for these past two months all you have done is grow angrier and have retreated more within yourself. Zuko, please tell me the truth. What is wrong?"

I groaned exasperated. "Look at us Uncle. We're fugitives of the Fire Nation. Being chased by my crazy sister and could be turned over to her and my father by just about anyone. We can never go home! I'll never be able to become fire lord so I can stop this idiotic war! And besides you, no one even cares about me! How am I supposed to feel Uncle?! I'd really like to know!"

"Prince Zuko-"

"Don't call me that! In case you didn't hear me I'm not even considered a prince anymore!"

"My nephew," Uncle tried again, "I know you are hurting. It pains me to see you like this. It truly does. And I don't mind the fact that you don't want to hunt down the Avatar anymore. What I do mind though is your attitude! You have never been one to give up and throw in the towel because things become too hard! You must hang on to hope Zuko. You would be surprised how much it can pull you through even the toughest of obstacles."

"You're making absolutely no sense!" I shouted frustrated. Can't my Uncle ever say anything without it being so cryptic?

"Listen to me Zuko" Uncle commanded in his General's voice that demanded authority. "You don't have to go after the Avatar, but at the same time you cannot lose sight of who you are and what is important to you." His voice became thoughtful as he asked, "Do you really wish to end this war?"

I was still angry about this conversation, but as I started to answer him my voice, surprisingly, came out almost soft; it was still a little rough. "After hearing what the generals in the Fire Nation are willing to do and seeing how they can hurt innocent people like that nurse…Song?" It had been a while since I thought of the nurse that treated Uncle once and showed me the fire burns on her leg. "It made me realize how dumb this whole war is. No nation should be considered better than all the others. There needs to be peace amongst the nations once again so others no longer have to live in fear."

"I see" Uncle mused quietly. He's up to something. I know it. Of course I was proven to be correct when the next words to come out of his mouth were, "If this is so then why not ask the Avatar if you can join his group and work together?"

I felt my good eye widen while my other one tried, with little success. I couldn't control myself as I blurted, "_**HAVE YOU GONE COMPLETELY INSANE!**_ What makes you think they would ever let me join them even if I wanted to?! It's not like I can just go up to them and ask politely 'Hey I was wondering can I join your group please?!' After having chased them around the world for nearly half a year I highly doubt they hold a warm spot for me!" You know for being a wise general that is one of the stupidest ideas he could have ever come up with! I need to calm down before I start fire bending and possibly cause someone to investigate. "I'm going for a walk."

With that I turned from my Uncle and walked away heading for the cliff to look at the lake. But not without grabbing my duo swords first. No way am I taking any chances if I have to fight and can't use my fire bending to protect myself.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

_-Zuko-_

I walked through the woods quietly trying to forget the conversation Uncle and I just had with no success. For some reason the idea of going to the Avatar for his help was ludicrous, but at the same time…almost…welcoming. No, no, no! Get the idea out of your head Zuko! It's not going to happen! It wouldn't matter if I got down on my knees and begged for hours! The Avatar and those two friends of his would never take me in and let me join them.

With how my luck has been going the Avatar would probably air bend me into the nearest tree as soon as I came anywhere near a single one of them. The water tribe warrior – well in all fairness I could take him easily. He's only ever actually hit me once or twice in all the times we fought against each other. All the other times I have been able to take him because he is always busy trying to run or make sarcastic remarks to distract someone else. Plus he really needs to learn to be quiet when he tries to sneak up on people. I mean seriously, doesn't he know the best way to sneak up on people is to stay quiet and not blurt out that you're attacking?! The water bender would…The water bender would…

She would…wait…what was her name again? Kat…Kata…C'mon Zuko think, it's right on the tip of your tongue. Katar…Katara. That's it! Her name's Katara!

Katara would…would…actually it's pretty hard to tell what she would do. Out of all three of them she has to be the most confusing. One minute she could be kind, sweet, caring, motherly and the next she could be furious enough to trap you inside of a block of ice! I cringed at that since she had actually trapped me in a block of ice once when I attacked her at the North Pole. She really had gotten better with her water bending compared to when I first met her; of course it didn't help my case that she had a full moon to help her. I still remember when she had me trapped in there she had this little smirk on her face that probably said something along the lines of 'ha-ha not so tough now are you.' Oh that was so aggravating, but at the same time, that little smirk was almost … cute.

Wait a minute! Cute! I just used the word _cute_ to describe the water bender! That's it I'm out of here! I'm going back to the cave and I'm going to sle-

All of a sudden I heard movement behind me. From the thuds I could barely hear it sounded like the person was running. _Great just what I need, to be spotted and turned over to Azula._ I ducked behind a tree with my hand gripping my duo swords ready to fight back. However who I saw took me completely by surprise, especially since they had just previously plagued my thoughts.

The water bender went running past me, breathing heavily. What really surprised me was the fact that the Avatar and her warrior brother were nowhere to be seen. That's weird. I knew I should have just turned around and left, but a small part of me was nagging at me to follow her. Even more surprising was the fact that the nagging part won so I was quietly following the water bender as she ran towards the cliff, only to trip over a tree root as she neared it.

I didn't know what to do. Here I am watching my own enemy run through the woods _by herself_ while I am crouched down behind a tree debating whether to just leave or go up to her just so I can figure out why she's alone and why her breathing is so shaky.

Then she started to do the one thing that actually _**scares**_ me; she started to cry.

It wasn't those soft sobs like I heard her do once when I had captured the Avatar in her village. It was full out crying your eyes out kind of crying. She started to stand so she could look up at the moon, maybe she thought it would be comforting, I don't know, and that is when I got a better look at her.

Her long light blue dress with white along the edges of her sleeves, neck and down near her feet was covered in dirt and grass stains along with her dark blue pants that she wore underneath. There were tears in her pants around her ankles and the bottom of her dress, or what's left of it, was in tatters. Quite honestly, with the way her dress was now compared to the last time I saw her, it looked like this dress had been the only thing she had been able to wear for over a month or longer. I also noticed that her right sleeve had a huge tear mark at her shoulder like someone had grabbed her roughly and she had tried to run away. The water bender's long hair was out of her normal braid for once, but it looked like it had been tugged out by force. I couldn't see her face because she still had not turned around, but I didn't think I was ready to see what could have possibly happened.

The more I watched her cry the angrier I grew. I could feel my inner fire burning inside of me, begging me to let some of my anger and frustration out through my fire bending. I didn't because I don't want to scare her, but I could feel hot steam escape from my nose with each breath I took. Something bad happened to her and from the looks of things she is all alone with no one to take care of her. This didn't make any sense. Why was she alone in the first place? Why wasn't she with her friends? Why weren't the Avatar and that idiot brother of hers looking for her?! Unless…they didn't even know she was gone. Or maybe they got separated during the travels and she's lost.

Ok it's pretty clear she's lost, but that doesn't necessarily explain why she's in this condition in the first place. If she was just lost and was running to try to find her way through the woods, the most that would have happened to her is maybe a slight tear here and there, but that's it. Something's not right.

I was so absorbed in my own analysis from what I had observed of the water bender that I didn't even hear the footsteps until she let out a horrified gasp. I turned my head to see a man much older than her (but not that old, most likely he was somewhere in his thirties), whom I could tell was a citizen of the Fire Nation, approach her with a sneer on his face.

All it took was seeing that one sneer and almost everything began to click together. This man had been holding the water bend-I mean Katara against her will. That's why she was running! She had been trying to escape and must have thought she had gotten far enough away! My inner fire started to intensify as my anger increased. I kept my fist clenched together to try to control myself just a little longer to come up with a good enough plan of attack to almost no avail.

The only thoughts running through my mind were how dare he! How dare he hold her against her will and terrorize her! All she has ever done is try to help and protect people and this is what she gets in return?! I don't care if she's my enemy or not she is still a young woman and you treat her right!

Katara was still standing there, but she slowly tried to back away towards the woods. Now unfortunately I am even more confused and it's distracting me, but I can't help it. Why is she not fighting back with her water bending? She could have frozen him ten feet in the air by now with the water from the lake, but she just keeps backing up.

The fire bender advances towards her saying, "Did you really think you could get away from me that easily little girl" in a rough slightly slurred voice; he must have been drinking, but not to the point where he is intoxicated and has no clue what he is doing. He grabs her roughly by her hair and she yelps out in pain.

And that is the final straw!

I burst out from behind the tree, duo swords in hands and shout at him, "_**GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF HER!**_"

He tosses her aside and she rolls over on the ground near the edge of the cliff, but thankfully she does not roll any further. The man charges at me, his hands ablaze from his fire bending. I use my duo swords to conjure up my own flames, which are stronger than his, and they cause him to go flying towards the trees. I sheath my swords as he glares up at me; not much of a fighter if he's giving up already. I grab him by the collar of his shirt and knock him out with my fist.

_That was close_, I thought as I looked around for where Katara was and began to panic when I didn't see her. I heard whimpering and ran over to where she had been and was horrified to see her dangling from one of the jutted out rocks on the cliff. She looked up at me with tears streaked down her dirt covered face.

I immediately fell down onto my stomach and reached for her. "Grab my hand!" I shouted. Katara looked at me unsure as if to trust me or not while she was still crying silently. "C'mon! You can do it!"

Katara started to reach for me and just about touched my fingers when she started to slip and screamed, gripping the rock with both of her hands.

"Try again!" I demanded. Katara just shook uncontrollably from her crying. So I shouted again. "Reach for me!"

"I can't!" she cried. It was the first time she had spoken throughout this entire situation. I wasn't about to take her giving up on me lightly.

"Listen to me!" Katara looked up at me again. "You have to trust me! Grab my hand! I won't let go! I promise!" Katara stared up at me, sorrow filling her eyes, but finally she reached her hand up to me and I caught her around her forearm as she did with me and dug her nails into me. It hurt slightly but I didn't care. "Just hold on to me and I'll pull you up!" I shouted.

She nodded and I pulled with all of my strength. Katara helped a little by pushing off of the rock beneath her foot. When she was about halfway up I stood and brought her the rest of the way. After her feet touched the solid ground she continued to hold on to my arms to regain her balance and she breathed heavily.

"I told you I wouldn't let go" I whispered in my usual rough voice; I had tried to make it softer but with no luck.

Katara didn't respond. She looked at me once and then suddenly her eyes closed and she fell forwards into my arms. I caught her but stumbled a little. She was going to be passed out for a while, that was easy to tell. I slowly shifted her weight so that I could pick her up more easily and I carried her back-bridal style-to the cave so Uncle could take a look at her. Her neck hung back over my arm and I wanted to shift her so her neck wasn't like that, but I didn't want to keep jostling her.

As I was carrying her I noticed how light she felt and when I looked down at her again I could tell she looked like she was at the beginning stages of starvation. For some unknown reason I could think of I brought her closer to my chest like I was trying to comfort her.

Now all I can think is what did he do to her?


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three:

_-Katara-_

What's going on? Where am I? Am I still in the woods? Why is it so warm? All of these thoughts were racing through my head as I finally start to feel myself wake up. I slowly opened my eyes to see that I was lying by a small fire with a small teapot stand over it warming up a pot of tea. This doesn't make any sense, wasn't I just in the woods looking up at the moon a minute ago?

Suddenly I felt a warm hand just barely brush against my shoulder. I bolted up right and backed away from the owner of the hand.

"It's alright my dear you are safe now" I heard a gravelly voice say. I looked up to find the owner of the voice to be an older man with gray hair and a gray beard. He had pale skin and dark gold eyes. A part of me noted that this was not the man that held me captive before, but then I remembered how I had gotten away from that man; a young man had come to my rescue. I guess he must have brought me here, but why? And if that is true than where is he? But more importantly who is this man in front of me?!

"Wh – Who are you?" I whispered.

Just before he could answer the young man had entered with me just realizing that we were all inside of a cave. With the help of the firelight I was able to get a better look at him.

He looked like he could be my age, give or take one to two years. He was tall with the same pale skin as the man who was knelt beside me after I realized he had just been trying to cover me with the blanket that was still in his left hand. His hair was a raven black color and looked like it was at the beginning stages of reaching his cheek bones. There was absolutely no childhood roundness left in his face, but I did note that some of his facial features seemed relatively similar to the old man closest to me. My eyes then reached a scar on his face that completely surrounded his left eye and looked like it went up to reach his ear. Did he have that scar before? Oh yeah he did. I guess I didn't notice because I was too scared. Finally my eyes reached his eyes to see that they were like the gold in a sunrise. Wait, those eyes seem so familiar to me. Have I met him before tonight? Oh my head!

"Good you're awake" the young man stated in a voice that was rough, but at the same time – gentle.

"What do you mean?" I asked confused, as normal.

"I wasn't sure if you were going to wake up after you fainted" he explained in that same voice.

"O…kay?" _Someone please explain to me what is going on!_

"Can you tell us what happened to you my dear?" the old man called out to get my attention.

I thought about it and shook my head no repeatedly. I don't know these people! Why should I tell them anything?!

The young man approached me slowly so he could stand in front of me. He seemed slightly annoyed so I backed up until my back was straight against the wall of the cave. He kneeled down in front of me and I vaguely saw the old man give him a look that seemed to be a little bit of a warning. "Then can you tell us how you got out here so we can take you back to your friends?" he asked in that rough voice.

What's with the questions?! I'm not answering! I have my own questions!

"No!" I shouted stunning both of them. "No I won't tell you anything! I don't know who you are and I don't know what I'm doing here! Why did you bring me here?! Why do you keep asking me questions that I don't even know how to answer?! But more importantly, _**who are you**_?!"

Then both men looked at me like I had gone crazy. The old man put a hand on the young man's shoulder as a way of telling him to back up.

"My name is Iroh young lady" he stated kindly, like we were old friends. "My nephew and I are originally from the Fire Nation, but we have been living in this cave in the Earth Kingdom for about two months now."

"Uncle" the man's nephew said in a warning tone as if he was giving away too much information.

"Then who are you?" I asked the young man as calmly as I could.

Iroh's nephew turned to me with a stunned expression. "What are you talking about? You know who I am." I just shook my head confused. "You know…Zuko." I shook my head again. "Don't tell me you don't recognize this!" he pointed in disgust to the scar on the left side of his face. I squinted at him to get a better look and try to picture him in my mind, but all that came was his eyes; they were the only thing that seemed to stand out. However I couldn't tell him this without him thinking I was a creepy lunatic so I just shook my head again.

That seemed to be the wrong thing to do because he just growled in frustration as I cowered more into the cave wall.

"Zuko" Iroh called out sternly.

Zuko looked back at me, but I could tell he was still frustrated. "You have to at least remember something!" he shouted in a slightly controlled voice. "I mean you know what your name is right?!"

I can't take much more of this! "Stop shouting at me! I don't know!" I began to cradle my head in my hands like I would do whenever I was upset lately. Suddenly I felt warm, strong hands gently grip my forearms. I looked up to see Zuko bring my arms closer to him and the firelight. I saw him looking at the bruises that wrapped around both of my wrists.

"What happened to you?" he whispered so softly I wasn't sure I heard him. Then I saw a picture form in my head. It was of me and him together; except he was dressed different and most of his raven black hair was gone aside from his ponytail. He was holding onto my wrists and said in a controlled whisper, '_I'll save you from the pirates_.' Then the picture disappeared.

"You…," I started and tried again. "You saved me from pirates?"

Zuko looked me in the eyes, confused. "What?" was his only response.

"Zuko, let's leave our young friend to rest now. I need to talk to you outside" Iroh stated. Zuko looked briefly into my eyes then turned to his Uncle and nodded, releasing my arms gently. Then he handed me the blanket as they both walked outside.

I lay back down and rested my right arm under my head. I don't understand any of this and I don't like it. This is all so confusing and I'm not waiting to figure out what they want with me. As soon as they are both asleep I'm out of here.

With my mind set I closed my eyes so I could rest them while I listened for the two of them to go to sleep. It may take a couple of hours, but I don't care. I'm not staying here. I'm not going to let them hurt me too.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I just have to make this quick note saying thank you to my friend who helped me to come up with a metaphor that Iroh will say later on in the story. To this friend you know who you are so again thank you. Also for those of you who may not know a chrysalis is pretty much a fancy word for the cocoon a caterpillar makes. It will make sense when you get to that part. Ok, I'll let you get back to the story. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter Four:

_-Zuko-_

"What's wrong with her?!" I shouted at Uncle as soon as we were outside. Uncle brought his index finger to his lips telling me to shut up and inclined his head to the left as he walked that way. I followed. When we were a good enough distance I repeated my question quietly though I know I didn't need to. "What is wrong with her? Is she just trying really hard to keep secrets?"

"No Prince Zuko, there is something very wrong with her." Uncle paused while he collected his thoughts. "I cannot say for certain, but I believe our young water bender has amnesia."

Amnesia? "Are you serious?"

"Yes. Like I said, I do not know for sure, but I had seen it occur sometimes after major battles. No one really knows why, but many believe it has to deal with the after effect of being hit on the head. Some doctors also believe that amnesia is the body's way of repairing itself while also trying to protect the mind from anything unpleasant that may have occurred. As you could clearly see by the bruises on her wrists and from your observation of how skinny she is slowly becoming, something traumatic happened to her and she is not going to just open up about it. She will need lots of patience and healing."

"So," I began, "do you think she even remembers she's a water bender?"

"It's hard to say, why do you ask?"

"Because when the other fire bender showed up she just kept trying to back away from him. She never fought back once. That's not the Katara I remember from the North Pole. I was just curious."

"So, Katara is her name" Uncle stated slyly. "What a lovely name."

"Not the point Uncle." What is with him and mentioning girls nonstop?

"I know, and like I said I'm not sure if it's amnesia. For all we may now she could just be disoriented from what happened earlier."

"You don't honestly believe that" I stated confidently. Once Uncle makes up his mind he usually sticks with the idea. He's been like that for years and I highly doubt he would change anytime soon.

"No I don't. That is why you and I will be taking her to see a doctor tomorrow morning in town. It's the best we can do for her until we know the extent of her condition."

I know it's the right thing to do and we are going to do it, but there is one thing that just cannot be overlooked. "How exactly are we going to pay for that if we can barely get enough money to buy food and water for ourselves and the ostrich horse we have?"

"Don't worry about it. Many people these days appreciate a helping hand from others so I'm sure I could just work off the debt for a little bit. In the meantime that would mean you have to look after and care for Miss Katara" Uncle stated in a calm voice.

I couldn't even come up with coherent sentences as I blurted out everything that came to my mind. "Uncle—what—how—are you—you can't mean—I—no—I can't—argh!" I finally gave up until I could finally come out with a complete sentence. "How am I supposed to take care of someone I hardly know, except for a few brief encounters, who only seems to possibly remember one comment I made about pirates, when all that person seems to do when I'm around is grow scared out of her wits and tries to stay as far away from me as possible?"

"I never said it would be easy" Uncle started, but I cut him off.

"Easy? More like impossible."

Uncle stood there stroking his beard; must be deep in thought. I still don't get why he does that whenever he is thinking though. "Your lady friend is like a chrysalis. She is going through something difficult to understand, and won't be moving very far in the mean time." He laughs quickly with the sound resonating from his stomach before he continued. "You must give her the time, patience, and space. She needs to evolve into a beautiful butterfly."

I stared at him bewildered. "Uncle you are not helping."

"Would it have helped if I said she was like a fire lily in bloom that needs-"

"Uncle, enough with the metaphors already! Can't you get that I don't understand a word you are saying?! As usual!"

"You really should keep your voice down" Uncle commented. "Keep this up and you'll wake up the entire nearby village."

I groaned exasperated. At this rate we'll be out here all night arguing and Katara is still inside the cave, hopefully sleeping, when she shouldn't have been left alone in the first place.

As if Uncle could read my mind he finally stated, "We'll just take this one day at a time Zuko. That's all we really can do until Miss Katara is willing to open up to us more." He paused as he yawned loudly. "I believe now would be a good time for us to get some rest. We have a busy day ahead of us in the morning."

We walked back to the cave to find Katara asleep where we had left her. Uncle made some comment of finishing his tea before he retires, but I wasn't paying attention. My focus was solely on Katara. I don't know what happened to her, but it can't be good. Her sleeping form didn't seem right. She's too rigid. Her entire body, aside from her arm tucked underneath her head, was as straight as the Avatar's glider that he is always carrying around with him. Katara's face was as immobile as the stone behind her; I couldn't even tell if she was finally sleeping peacefully or what.

I looked away from her to find my sleeping mat and laid it close to fire. It was more to keep an eye on Katara than it was for warmth. I felt the need to watch over her while my Uncle started to fall asleep. My eyes kept drifting shut, but I forced them to stay open. I didn't understand what the big deal was. Katara's asleep, she's safe, and here I am depriving myself of much needed sleep. I still tried my hardest to fight of the sleepiness I was feeling.

Eventually, though apparently it was probably only a few short minutes, I lost the fight against my eyelids and I fell asleep as my Uncle began to snore loudly.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five:

_-Katara-_

It felt like forever until I was brave enough to open my eyes to see that the man named Iroh and his nephew had fallen asleep. I knew one of them had fallen asleep as soon as I heard the obnoxiously loud snoring. Turning slightly I saw that it was Iroh. Well at least I know he is out cold until the morning. Hopefully I'll be long gone by then. I mean, he seems like a nice man, but how am I supposed to know if I can trust him? Or his nephew?

I quickly looked over at him just to make sure he was still asleep. Lucky for me he still is. How he can sleep through all of that snoring is beyond me.

As I continue to stare at him through the slowly dying fire I begin to notice certain things about him. Like how his scar seems less fierce, but still mysterious while he sleeps. His jaw is more relaxed unlike earlier when it would become tense and hard when he was frustrated. However, despite his frustrations, while he slept he looked almost…calm. Like he could care less about what is going on around him. Too bad I can't fall asleep as easily as them.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts and so I would stop looking at the man's nephew. _C'mon, focus…whoever I am! The men are asleep so it's time to get out of here!_

I stood up as quietly as I could and began to make my way across to the entrance of the cave. _Just less than a meter away_, I tell myself. But I stop cold when I hear the man's nephew groan groggily.

Panicking I look behind me to see the young man roll over onto his back and sigh once before he falls back to sleep. I breathe out a sigh of relief and walk out of the cave.

Breathing in the fresh evening air I begin to walk away so I can find the nearest town and try to forget everything that has happened. Nothing can stop me now; I'm finally free.

Or so I thought.

"What are you doing?" a rough voice calls out from behind me.

I gasp as I turn slowly to the voice. Only to realize it is the nephew standing by the entrance of the cave…what did he say his name was again? Z…uko? He just keeps staring at me; makes no move to approach me, nothing. Someone else may find him and his simple question harmless enough to answer, but not me.

I'm not falling for any tricks again.

Quick as I could I grab a twig by my foot and throw it at him. He catches it with one hand as I turn and run for my life.

As I run I hear him calling out to me shouting "Wait! Stop running!" and "Would you stop already?!" I pretend not to hear him; only focused on getting out of these woods and reaching a town. He keeps running after me and is keeping up an easy pace just a couple of steps behind me. Oh man he really is fast!

Suddenly my foot catches on an ingrown root and I stumble to the ground. I know I cannot get up fast enough before he catches me. I turn around quickly onto my back and as soon as he is right in front of me I bring both of my arms up as my only way of defending myself, expecting something to happen.

He does nothing.

I lower my arms ever so slightly to see him towering in front of me with a bemused expression on his face at first, but then it softens as he whispers one sentence that I'm not even sure I heard correctly.

"I'm not here to hurt you."

* * *

_-Zuko- _

I knew I should have been watching her! Not even asleep for half an hour and she decides to make a run for it?! In all honesty I may not have even heard her if I had not rolled over onto my back and heard her sigh quietly. I soon as I heard that my eyes flew open to see her sleeping spot vacant and her heading out of the cave.

She stood there for a second breathing in the night air so I thought I may have just overreacted; that she just needed some fresh air. To be on the safe side I asked, "What are you doing?"

She gasped before she turned to me, watching me briefly, before she grabbed a twig and threw it at my head. I caught it just as quickly and realized she had run off into the woods. I growled in frustration and ran after her trying countless times to call her back just so she would stop and stay still. She wouldn't even turn around. She wouldn't even water bend at me!

Out of nowhere Katara let out a small cry as she fell to the ground; must have tripped. Just as I reach her she brings her arms up to her face as if she is trying to defend herself.

Then it truly sinks in to my thick skull that she really doesn't remember anything about me or anyone for that matter. Practically all that is left of the strong water bender I fought against at the North Pole is her barely intact body; seeing how she's pretty much starving is enough to justify my thoughts.

I need her to calm down and trust me, but how do I do that?

Maybe…if I just get her to talk with me we can work something out? Worth a shot.

"I'm not here to hurt you" I tell her in the gentlest voice I can manage, but not even close because it still comes out rough.

Katara looks at me bewildered. She lowers her arms more until they finally come to rest at her side. Okay, so far so good. Now what? I ever so slowly lower myself down to the ground, never breaking eye contact with her, so she can hear me more clearly. Katara continues to watch me warily. "I'm not here to hurt you" I repeat to her as I hesitantly reach out a hand to her without even thinking.

Katara flinches and I drop my hand back down to my side. "Sorry" I mutter. She looks away from me to the ground. "Why are you running?" I finally ask her. Katara won't answer me; she just plays with her torn dress. "Please answer me."

Finally she looks back up at me with hard eyes. "Why do you care?" she shot back.

"Because my Uncle and I are taking you to a doctor tomorrow so we can get you help."

"So what?"

"**What do you mean 'so what?!**'" I was starting to get angry with this girl. "Have you even looked at yourself lately?! You're not exactly strong enough to take care of yourself right now! Plus you can't even remember a single thing about yourself so how do you even expect to be able to know what you are going to do and where you need to go?!"

"I can figure something out on my own!"

"No you can't!"

"Look I appreciate you saving my life, but that's it! Now leave me alone!" She pushed herself off the ground and started to walk away again. _Argh!_ Are all girls this stubborn?!

Wait – stubborn! Katara's still as stubborn as ever! Maybe I _can_ do something!

"Katara!" I shouted at the top of my lungs.

Katara stopped, rooted in place. She turned around slowly with her wide blue eyes. "What?" she breathed.

"I said Katara…that's your name" I stated.

"It…it is?" Katara just continued to stare at my wide eyed.

I nodded briefly. "Does it sound familiar to you at all?" Katara closed her eyes, deep in thought. Her brows furrowed together and when she opened her eyes again she pouted. "Oh. Well…at least now you can go by that instead of no name."

"It is pretty" she murmured to herself. "Can I ask you something?" I nodded once. "How do you even know my name—if that's really what it is?"

Ok, how do I answer her without scaring her or having her attack me? "Um, well, you and I had met a couple of times before this so I ended up learning it during one of our…meetings." I should probably keep out that part that I had attacked her couple of different times. "You just don't remember."

Katara remained quiet as she thought this over. "I still don't know if I can trust you though."

For some reason I don't understand I actually felt a little hurt by her statement. "Then answer me this" I requested. "If you don't trust me then why did you let me save you, not counting the fact that you wanted to live because that was written all over your face."

Katara opened her mouth and closed it quickly before she replied. "I don't know. I'm so confused."

I walked over to her with my hands held up showing that I meant no harm until I was standing in front of her. I had to lower my head just a little since she was only an inch or two shorter than me. "Look Katara," I began, "I know you're scared and I know you're confused. It's going to be a while before you can take care of yourself on your own. I also know you have every right to not to want to trust people considering what I saw near the cliff, but I want you to trust me. And my Uncle" I added as an afterthought. "Please, let us help you." Katara opened her mouth to protest, but I held my hand up. "Let me finish. Give us a chance. Give me the chance to show you that you can trust me. When you get to the point where you can take care of yourself and if you don't want to be around us then you can leave. I won't stop you."

Katara gasped softly. "Do you really mean that?"

"Yes" I stated firmly. "So, will you let me—I mean us—help you?"

Katara thought it over and met my gaze before she nodded her head yes.

"Good" was the best I could come up with. "Now why don't we head back so you can sleep. You've had a long enough day."

"Ok" Katara replied quietly. I held out my hand for her without thinking, offering her to take it. She just looked at it and held her hands behind her back. "Sorry" she mumbled.

"You don't need to be sorry" I stated calmly as I dropped my hand. I turned around to walk back and had not even taken a step when I felt a light pressure on my shirt sleeve. I turned my head slightly to see Katara staring up at me apologetically as she held onto my shirt with her fingers. I nodded down at her to let her know it was okay. She nodded back and we slowly made our way to the cave. Once inside she let go of me and went back to her original sleeping spot, pulling the blanket over her, while I lay back down on my sleeping mat. My eyes roamed back to her one more time to see her staring at me with her confused eyes.

"We'll talk more in the morning" I called out quietly even though Uncle was still snoring loudly. She must have heard me though because she gave a slight nod before she closed her eyes and she was out instantly.

I breathed deeply knowing she wasn't going to try to run away again. She didn't fully trust me, but considering all things that's understandable. But at least she trusts us enough to stay with us a little longer in order to help her. _Better than nothing,_ I thought tiredly as I closed my eyes and fell into a dreamless sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six:

_-Katara-_

I don't know what time it was when I woke up, but the smell of something close to me brought me out of my fatigued state. I opened my eyes to see a small cup of a warm liquid beside my arm. At first I couldn't remember where I was and why, but then I remembered that the young man, Zuko, had brought me here after saving me and little parts of our conversation from last night when I had tried to leave.

"Good you're up" I heard Zuko's rough voice call out. I looked up bewildered until I saw him sitting cross – legged by the fire drinking from his own cup. I guess that's his way of saying good morning. "Uncle will be back soon, he just needed to stretch his legs. He left you a cup of tea for when you woke up."

I nodded, still unsure of how to act around him. I mean, he seemed sincere when he was talking to me last night. Still there is something about him that reads something like 'come too close and I'll strike back' or something like that.

"How are you feeling?" He asked quietly.

I shrugged. "Same as ever. Confused."

"We'll help you as best as we can" He promised.

I wasn't able to respond because as soon as the words started to form in my head I heard his Uncle come back in.

"Why good morning" he called cheerfully. "How are you this fine morning? Did you sleep well?"

I looked over at Zuko warily, waiting for him to rat me out by telling his Uncle that I had tried to leave. To my complete surprise Zuko practically did the total opposite. "Yeah I'm sure she slept well if she was able to over look your obnoxious snoring." By the tone of his voice he was serious.

"Zuko I do not snore" Zuko's Uncle countered.

"Oh yes, you do."

"I-" his Uncle started until he saw my slight shake of the head to confirm that he had been snoring. "Oh. Then please accept my apologies for disrupting your sleep Miss Katara." I blinked repeatedly and shook my head trying to clear it. He knew my name, if that's what it is, too? As if he had read my mind he told me, "Zuko mentioned your name last night while we were talking."

I dropped my head into my left hand as my right hand reached shakily for the tea still sitting in front of me. I took a small sip as the warm liquid slid down my throat with ease. It seemed to warm me up immediately so I quickly finished the rest of it in one swig. After it was gone I noticed that it had some kind of flavoring to it. "What is this?" I asked quietly not wanting to insult the men in front of me.

"That is jasmine tea that I brewed myself" Zuko's Uncle said with pride.

"It's…very good…Sir."

"No need to call me Sir Miss Katara. Just call me Iroh" he requested.

I didn't know if I should. I mean from what I can remember, I was not supposed to call anyone by their first name. But, maybe this time it wouldn't be such a bad idea? How I hate being so confused.

Finally I gave in. "If you insist…Iroh."

"Much better" Iroh praised me with a gentle smile. "Now I'm not sure if my nephew told you yet or not, but shortly we will be taking you to the nearby village to see the doctor so we may know the extent of your condition and what we can do to help you. Is that alright with you?"

I blinked slowly, vaguely remembering Zuko mentioning it last night so I nodded. "Yeah, that's ok I guess."

Iroh nodded and left me alone with Zuko saying he was going to retrieve their small bag with their coins in it. We were both silent until I notice Zuko glance at me quickly as if he was trying to think something over.

"Do you want to borrow my outer robe?" he asked quickly like he was embarrassed to have mentioned it. "Just because I thought you might have liked something to wear over your dress" he defended himself.

He had a point. I didn't really want people to see me in my dress with all the tears it had at the bottom and shoulder. "S-s-sure" I finally stuttered out. He nodded once as he undid the sash around his waist removing his sleeveless outer robe to show that he was wearing earth green pants and long sleeve shirt with dark brown boots. He handed it to me quickly as I mumbled an inaudible "thank you."

"You're welcome" he replied just as quietly. I slipped the robe on around my shoulders and closed it over my dress tying the sash around my waist as best as I could. It was slightly bulky on me because of how skinny I am now and the bottom just reached my feet showing that there was only a slight difference in height between us.

When I looked back over at Zuko he had just tied on a hat and was looking down at the floor like there was something else he wanted to say, but didn't want to at the same time. I started to stand up again, (I had been leaning against the wall), so I could walk outside to find Iroh. My movements must have caught Zuko's attention because he looked back up at me with a worried expression. "Do you want some help?" he inquired as I got up shakily. I shook my head no as I stood up the rest of the way.

Not even a couple of steps to the cave entrance and I trip on something, most likely a rock, and start to fall over. I close my eyes waiting for the oncoming impact, but it never came. I opened my eyes to see that I was caught with my face a short distance from the ground. Turning my head I notice that Zuko had come up behind me and had caught me by the back of my borrowed robe.

He pulled me back up slowly until I was standing up straight. "So much for not needing help huh?" Zuko commented sarcastically. I pouted and tried to walk away only to be stopped when I realized that Zuko was still holding onto the back of the robe.

"Um, can you…let go of me now?" I asked politely as I could, but my breath still came out shaky. Why can't I stop this and learn to calm down? I'm out of danger…right?

Zuko blinked repeatedly before he glanced back down at his hand to realize what I had just said. "Sorry" he rushed and let go of me quickly. I retreated a few steps from him not meeting his eyes. "We should go now." I nodded and gestured for him to lead the way.

After we were outside he turned back to me and almost caused me to run into him; luckily I was able to stop myself and retreated a step back.

"Katara," Zuko started, "I need you to pay very close attention to what I'm about to tell you. And I know what I'm about to tell you is going to confuse you and probably make you more weary than you already are, but I need you to trust me." He was right about already being confused and a part of me was telling me to be extremely cautious, but I remained silent and nodded so he would know to continue. "Ok, basically when we get into to town you _cannot_ under any circumstances repeat my name or my Uncle's to anyone we see; not even to the doctor."

That's—weird. Despite him asking me to trust him I had to ask. "Why?"

Zuko sucked in a breath avoiding my gaze. Ok him acting like this is not helping the 'please trust me case.' But, for some reason I actually felt a little sorry for him. It looked like he wanted to tell me something and either couldn't find the right words or he just wanted to completely avoid the subject.

Hesitantly he said, "It's just better…if…you don't know all the details just yet. I don't want you getting yourself worked up." He gazed at me with those gold eyes of his. Almost in pleading way, though not quite; there was still a little hardness in them, but I'm guessing that's just natural for him.

A large part of me was yelling at me to stay away from him and not trust him. To just run away now and never look back. But I just couldn't. Something about those eyes just kept telling me that everything would be alright. Then his promise from last night rang through my head. _'When you get to the point where you can take care of yourself and if you don't want to be around us then you can leave. I won't stop you.' _

Finally the little voice in my head telling me that I can trust him won me over so I nodded and tried to put a smile on my face, but it felt more like a grimace. "Ok. Ok I'll trust you."

Zuko eyes widened, well the one on his right side did, before he stuttered out, "Re—really?"

"Yes." Zuko sighed in relief. "So if I'm not allowed to call you by your real names then what am I supposed to call you?"

"Lee, that's my fake name. Uncle's fake name is Mushi."

"Mushi?"

"It was the first thing I could come up with after I called myself Lee when I knew there are already too many people named Lee to begin with" Zuko defended.

"Ok ok! I was just repeating it to make sure I pronounced it right."

"Right" he stated sarcastically. I pouted and glared at him. He became serious again instantly. "C'mon, we still need to take you to the doctor so follow me." I obediently followed him.

He lead me around the cave to find an animal waiting there patiently eating some of the nearby grass. When it brought its head back up it seemed to glare at me for just being near him. "Um, what is that thing?"

"An ostrich – horse" Zuko replied calmly.

The ostrich – horse let out a squawk and I cowered back behind Zuko; though I made sure not to touch him. "Don't worry he doesn't bite" Zuko stated. Then he reached for the reins to try to bring him over to me. It came over and just glared down at me again. I gulped loudly.

"Sit down" Zuko ordered the animal. All it did was turn his glare on him. Somehow Zuko doesn't strike me as one to be glared at. Instead I would assume him to be the one doing the glaring. Wait, why did I just assume that? And feel like I'm 100% right? I looked back at Zuko's face and was proven to be correct when I saw him glare right back into the animal's eyes and said a little more loudly, "I said sit down." He pulled on the reins again and the animal obeyed by sitting on its legs.

Zuko turned back to me just as I put my head in my hands. "Are you ok?" he asked worriedly.

I brought my head back up slowly. "Yeah. Just tired I guess." Zuko eyed me a little more closely making me uncomfortable before he shrugged.

"Do you want some help on?"

"I don't know. I think I can manage." I walked past Zuko and approached the left side of the ostrich – horse. "Are you sure it won't bite?" Zuko nodded once. Very carefully I swung my right leg over to the other side and mounted the animal.

"Ok now hang on tight. I'm going to make him stand up." I yelped a little as the ostrich – horse stood up. Then he was perfectly still. Glad that part's over. "Uncle hurry up!" Zuko called out impatiently.

"I'm coming!" Iroh called back.

"I'll hold the reins while he walks so hopefully you won't be jostled too much" Zuko commented.

"You're not riding?" I thought he would want to be able to ride his own animal.

Zuko brought his gaze up to me, tilting his head back so he could fully see me from underneath his hat. "I thought you would want your space."

Wow he's considerate! I actually managed to pull off a small smile at the corner of my mouth. "Thank you…Lee."

Zuko nodded at me and thanked me for using his fake name just as his Uncle arrived. And with that the three of us headed into the woods to find the nearby village.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hello everyone, I hope you are enjoying this fanfic so far. However I do want to give you a little heads up for next Wednesday. Don't worry I will still post a new chapter, unfortunately it just may not be at the same time as it usually is on Wednesdays due to an appointment I have in the morning around this time. Again, I will post the next chapter next Wednesday, it just may be a little later than usual; I don't know yet. Ok, I'll let you get back to the chapter! Hope you like it!

* * *

Chapter Seven:

_-Katara-_

I don't know how long we had been walking, or in my case riding, but at one point the silence was beginning to become a little too much for me. Normally I don't care, especially since I wouldn't really talk that much before Zuko found me, but I still don't know him or his Uncle that well. Needless to say I'm getting antsy.

Iroh would occasionally talk to his nephew. However they were being so quiet I couldn't make out what they were saying. My guess is they are talking about me and don't want me to overhear them.

Finally I couldn't take anymore. Still holding onto the ostrich – horse's feathers I turned my head to Zuko and cleared my throat. Zuko inclined his head my direction so I knew I had gotten his attention, but then I was stuck. What do I say?

"What?" Zuko asked a little impatiently.

Ok if he keeps acting like this I don't know how I am going to tolerate being around him. Thinking quickly I asked the first thing that popped into my head. "Um, I was wondering, can…I ask…how you got…" I pointed to the left side of my face because I really didn't know how else to ask.

"NO!" he shouted and stopped walking, forcing me to grasp onto the ostrich – horse's feathers harder making it squawk angrily. Zuko turned his glare up to me and I cowered more shrinking into myself just so he would stop.

Zuko must have seen I was terrified, or he noticed Iroh scowling at him from behind, because he shut his eyes and pinched his nose with his thumb and index finger. "No," he stated more quietly with his eyes still closed, "I can't. It's…very personal."

"I'm sorry" I said as I felt my eyes begin to water. Zuko opened his eyes again and they widened (well his good eye did) as he stared at me. I averted my gaze quickly so I wouldn't start crying. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Zuko raise his hand like he was about to touch my hand, but thought better of it and started rubbing his neck. "We should keep moving. We're just a couple of minutes away from the village." And with that he started walking again making me and the ostrich horse lurch forward a little. I looked back down at him, but he kept his gaze straight forward. Then I felt Iroh's gaze on me so I turned my head to him. He smiled at me encouragingly. I tried to smile back; again it felt like a grimace.

Within minutes we were in the village, just as Zuko—I mean Lee said. Have to remember to call him Lee while we're in the village; though I still don't understand why. Iroh—no wait, Mushi asked a woman walking by where the doctor can be found and she pointed us in that direction. Once we reached the small building, which looked more like a small house for a young couple than a doctor's house, Lee looked up at me and told me I had to get off the ostrich – horse.

"Can't you get it to sit down again?"

"Tried that three times already while you were off in your own little world" Lee commented. "You're going to have to get off on your own."

I grimaced while eyeing the ground. Very carefully I swung my right leg over and placed my foot on the ground. Only to lose my footing on a large rock I hadn't noticed before and fell onto my behind.

Mushi rushed over. "Are you alright my dear?"

"Yeah I'm fine" I groaned embarrassed. I've had worse than a little bump. Lee sighed exasperated. "What's your problem?"

"Did I say anything?" I glowered at him and he sighed again. "I'm annoyed that my Uncle is overreacting again when I can see clearly that you are perfectly fine after your small fall."

"Do you always have to be so mean to your Uncle?" I argued.

"No, but I'm allowed to be annoyed."

"There's a difference between being annoyed and being mean."

"Whatever."

"Are you always so pessimistic?"

"Yes." I gawked at him stunned. "Don't you know sarcasm when you hear it?"

"Apparently not."

Lee growled, irritated. "Just forget it!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

We both looked away from each other with our arms crossed over our chests. Mushi then spoke up saying, "That's enough you two. Now Lee you apologize to Miss Katara."

I took a quick peek at Lee to see that his mouth had fallen open and he was scowling at his Uncle. "I didn't do anything! She overreacted!"

"Regardless nephew you did not need to react as you did. Now apologize!"

Lee groaned. "Sorry" he muttered not meeting my gaze. Talk about prideful!

Instead of giving him a hard time I nodded and said "It's okay." Lee grunted still not fully meeting my gaze.

"Now then," Mushi called our attention again, "Let's not waste any more time and have Miss Katara see the doctor." Mushi offered me his arm and I just looked at it warily.

I can already tell that Mushi (Iroh) is a very nice man, but I just can't. I don't know why. I mean I was able to hold onto Lee's (Zuko's) sleeve last night without any real problems. So what is so different now? I want to trust them, if only a little, but I just can't do it! Mushi watched me with sad, confused eyes as I tucked my arms behind my back. It looked like he was about to ask me what was wrong, but Lee, once again, actually came to my rescue.

"Uncle" he called to him. When Mushi brought his gaze over to him I saw Lee shake his head from side to side, like he was trying to say 'not the best idea right now.'

Luckily Mushi dropped his arm and smiled apologetically before he walked up the stairs. Lee and I followed. I mouthed 'thank you' to him once we were inside. He nodded once. Then the doctor came out with Mushi right behind him.

The doctor looked like he was somewhere in his early forties with short brown hair, green eyes, and he was about the same height as Mushi. "So is this our patient?" he asked kindly.

"She is" Mushi stated.

"Katara," he called out and I met his gentle gaze. "My name is Han and I'm going to see what I can do for you. Would you please come with me?" He held out his hand gesturing to the room behind him.

I swallowed the growing lump in my throat as I met the two older gentlemen's gazes and I met Lee/Zuko's last. He must have seen that I was terrified because he lowered his head a little so my eyes directly met his as he whispered so softly that only I could hear, "I'll be right here if you need me." I nodded to him then I nodded to Han. Followed him I allowed myself one last glance at Zuko. He nodded his head and attempted a small smile to encourage me; quite honestly it looked like a smirk, but I'm not complaining.

* * *

_-Zuko-_

I just stayed near the door to the other room, arms crossed over my chest and my hands clenched into fists so I could hear their conversation. It seemed like Han was trying to make her as comfortable as possible. "Alright Katara I just need to check your head to see if there is any real damage. May I?" I overheard with Katara's quiet reply of "Ok." There were a couple minutes of silence until Han spoke up again asking questions. "Katara, do you know how old you are?" There was a pause until I heard Katara say no. Han kept asking questions. "Do you know where you come from?" Silence. "Can you tell me where you lived last?" Silence. "Katara, do you remember anything that has happened to you?" Again silence, but Katara must have done something to get a reaction because the next thing Han asked was, "Can you tell me what happened?" Then nothing but infuriating silence.

I clenched my teeth together just to keep my temper in check and not start fire bending. It wouldn't do me any good. Plus the last thing we need is for me to make a scene when the whole town sounds very "lively" this morning. I just wish Katara would say something! Anything!

"Lee why don't you sit down" Uncle called out pleasantly.

I ever so slowly turned my head to glower at him as I said in a harsh whisper, "No!"

"Standing around waiting is not going to do any good" he tried again. I just continued to glower at him until he got the message.

Then I heard Han talking again and I paid more attention as I leaned closer to the door. "I'm going to talk with your two friends now. Here's some clean water so you can wash your face and I'll see what I can do to find you a new dress. I'll be back in a few minutes." As soon as he was finished talking he opened the door and stepped out.

"Well?!" I asked rather loudly and impatiently.

"Lee" Uncle called out my fake name in a warning. "Please forgive my nephew. Patience is not one of his strongest qualities."

"I understand." Neither one of them heard me growl in response. "Now I need to ask, Lee?"

I looked back at him. "Yeah?"

"When you found Katara, what was she like?" He saw my bemused expression to his question so he started again. "You found her just last night correct?" I nodded. "How was Katara acting? Was she scared or angry? And how exactly did you find her?"

I swallowed quietly and rubbed the back of my neck trying to think of an answer. I couldn't really tell him about the other fire bender that had attacked without causing some suspicion to us so I have to stick with the mild truth. "I was out walking when I thought I heard something. Curious, I walked further into the woods and it turned out to be Katara; I had met her once so that's how I knew her. She was just kneeling on the ground looking up at the moon and crying. When I tried to – talk to her she started to freak out. She tried to leave but – she tripped and I caught her…and she passed out. After she woke up I was eventually able to get her to at least try to trust me enough to help her. Um…that's it."

"I see. Well from what I could tell by her head bump and her present state it looks like she's been out there alone for about two months."

"Can she remember anything?" Uncle asked politely.

"I'm afraid not. She has full blown amnesia. No memory whatsoever. And to be quite honest she is very lucky you found her when you did young man."

"What are you talking about?" I whispered.

"She is at the beginning stages of starvation so luckily her body has the chance to heal better. To be on the safe side though I want you both to have her stick with broths and tea for the next couple of days so her body can gain more strength before you work her way back up to solid foods. I'm also going to give you some herbs to make into a tea to help her sleep better. From the dark circles under her eyes she hasn't been getting a lot. And as far as the bruises on her wrists-"

"How bad is she?" I have to know even if I don't like the answer.

Han hesitated. "I can't be certain as to the extent of her bruises since I don't know if they're connected to her amnesia, but it could have been an accident. Or…it could have been something worse. Regardless, she won't tell me. You'll just have to be patient with her. Let her learn how to trust again so she can fully heal. Hopefully she'll be able to open up to you by then. Whatever you do, make sure you don't force it out of her, or else she'll only draw more within herself and it will take even longer for her amnesia to clear up…if it even does. Her mind has been 'protecting herself' this way for a while now. If put under too much pressure there is a chance she'll never regain her memories."

Wow no pressure! And what does he mean 'something worse?' Like she was- Oh man I can't think of that or else I'm going to be sick.

Han and Uncle left me alone by the doorway again so they could talk privately before he would go back to check on Katara. I tried to keep a nonchalant attitude around them, but inside I was frantic. My mind was working at high speed trying to figure out what I'm supposed to do. How do I get her to remember without pushing her too hard? How do I get her to even talk to me about what happened?!

This is too much pressure.


End file.
